Chapter 3

     Amanda was in front of Carly's room, trying hard to listen what her two daughters were giggling about when suddenly Emily opened the door and caught her mother eavesdropping. Both of them flinched after seeing one other. 

     “Oh!” Amanda panicked and explained the obvious, “I just came to see if Carly is asleep or not.” 

     Emily mocked her in response. “By putting your ears on the door. Great excuse, bravo!”

     Embarrassed at getting caught red handed Amanda shouted. “Hey! It's my house I can go wherever I want.”

     With a grim look, all the traces of fun and smile she shared with her sister gone Emily walked past her mother into the stairs. Her stomach growled with hunger and she paced her way towards the dining table. When she looked behind her shoulder Amanda was following her. 

     “Why are you following me, mother?” She didn't stop for an answer and kept walking towards the dining table. 

     “I just need a little chat with my daughter, that's it.” Amanda replied, following her daughter close behind so even if Emily tried to escape from the conversation she could easily grab her right away. 

     “Why, your husband is not home so you are lurking behind me.” Finally stopping at the table Emily sat down on the chair. 

     Amanda also pulled the chair right beside her daughter and they both sat in complete silence. Amanda was calculating every word in her head, thinking hard how to say something that wouldn't enlarge her daughter in rage. 

     A few minutes later a maid came with a tray of food in her hand and neatly placed it in front of Emily, she smiled at the maid and said. “I'm sorry you have to do this for me.” 

     Before the maid could say anything, her mother snapped. “Yes you shouldn't do this for her, if you keep bringing her food like this after we ate, she'll never dine with us.” 

     The maid didn't say anything just her head hanging low in a polite manner. Even Amanda knew it was not her maid's fault and in reality she was venting over her daughter who never came to eat with her family in years. 

     “Leave us alone.” Amanda ordered the maid and with a polite nod the maid left. 

     Amanda cleared her throat and gazed at her daughter who was eating her food in silence without even noticing her presence. Again with a great thinking  power she cleared her throat and begun. “I'm going to talk you and you better listen.” 

     Emily gave no response, not even a nod because she knew exactly how to piss her mother off, her mother hated it when someone didn't respond to her and Emily was right Amanda was getting annoyed by this silent treatment. Amanda sighed annoyingly making Emily smile mischievously. 

     “Emily you are working a part time job, aren't you?” 

     “Yes, why?”

     “I should ask you this. Why are you working?” 

     “For money.” Emily said sternly filling her mouth with lots of vegetables. 

     “For goddess sake! Have some manners while eating!” As soon the words left her mouth she regretted them. Now Emily was glaring at her mother, chewing as loudly as she could. 

     Lifting her hand in defeat Amanda continued. “Never mind, back to the previous talk. Umm...yeah you work for money...I get that but why do you need money, we are buying you everything food, clothes, education—” 

     “Nope!” Emily stopped her mother. “You didn't bought my education I got into the college by scholarship.” 

     “Yes, yes. I know.” Amanda said haltingly waving her hands hurriedly dismissing the topic quickly making Emily think that her hardwork of getting a scholarship wasn't a big deal, as if she hadn't worked hard for many sleepless nights to archive it. Now she wasn't just  annoyed, she was furious at her mother. 

     “My point is,” Amanda begin again. “that you are a daughter of the most successful businessman and doing this kind of jobs just doesn't go well with our image.”

     Emily already lost her appetite after hearing this, Emily didn't even realise that she was clutching her hands so hard that they were shaking. After not speaking to her for serval weeks her mother just wanted to talk about how she was ruining her new family's reputation. 

     Emily snapped in anger. “Not 'our' image just 'your' and He is not my father!” 

     “Oh, for goodness sake, how long are you going to act like a brat?” Amanda voice came harsh, losing every inch of sweetness in her voice. “I'm your mother and he is my husband so technically and lawfully he is your father.” 

     Emily was ready to fight back but before she could say anything a voice came from the entrance. “Honey I'm home, and guess what I'm all wet because of the storm and rain. 

     After hearing her stepfather's voice Emily quickly stood up from her chair and started to leave when her mother stopped her. “Don't you dare leave!”

     Kevin Hearst, Emily's stepfather came smiling but when he noticed the angry faces on the dining table he realised what was happening, his wife and stepdaughter rarely talked mostly they just fought with each other and he was sure that it was their way of showing love towards each other. So instead of gawking at them and making them uncomfortable he started to leave. 

     “Wait,” He quickly turned back at his wife command. “you are not going anywhere. Stay here and have a meal with her.” 

     “Amanda don't do this. Don't make this hard for Emily.” Kevin requested politely. 

      Emily looked at him and even to this day she remembered the first time she met Mr Hearst. Month had passed since her father dissapearance and somehow they weren't suffering they had food on their table, clothes to wear and a comfortable home but the person who paid for all these things was gone and when she knew Mr Hearst was the one who was paying for everything was the day she met him. She hated herself so much because she legitely forced herself to hate him. Mr Hearst was a good man and if she had a chance to meet him in any other situation she would at least have a decent conversation with him but knowing her mother was having affair with her classmate's father, how could she not hate him after knowing this? In the 4 years of her mother's marriage to him neither she  ever tried to talk to him nor he tried to talk her maybe because he was waiting for her to move on from her father's dead or simply he didn't care but that didn't make Emily's mother understand anything because her contant nagging about how grateful Emily should be towards her new father made things worse for her. 

     “Hard!” Her mother stood up dramatically and put her hands on her hip. “For 4 years she is living with us and not even once she tried to talk to you. She is rude, arrogant and selfish,” She turned towards Emily and pointed her finger at her. “and you know what Emily you are a bad influence on your sister. Clara imitates your actions.” 

     Emily who was sitting rigidly on her chair in silence couldn't utter a word because if she opened her mouth that moment lots of people were going to get hurt but that didn't stop her mother. 

     “All these drama, your childish behavior that we are enduring for all this years, for what? For a man who left us because he was too careless!” 

     That was the breaking point of Emily's patience Emily was holding her anger for so long and suddenly after hearing about her father she just couldn't anymore, she stood up making the chair behind her fall on the floor. “STOP IT!” She shouted, “stop it. You forced him to leave and maybe you didn't but you just don't giva a damn about him. If you can't love him, at least show some compassion towards him. You never even once tried to know if he was alive or not.”

     “Please!” She scoffed. “He is alive somewhere far away from here and I know this because you and me both know that police never found his body and you are mourning over a man who abandoned us when we needed us him the most. You have to accept that we should all move forward and this is the man I love and marry.” 

     “Your love is that fickle,—” 

     “I beg your pardon.” Amanda interjected. 

     “—yesterday it was on my father, today it's on Mr Hearst, tomorrow it will be on someone else.” 

     Amanda raised her hand to slap Emily but Kevin caught her hand. 

     “Let me go! I'll teach this brat today, let go!” Amanda struggled to get of his grasp and he quickly signaled Emily to go which she did but before she could climb the stairs her mother's voice stopped her. 

     “From now on...you will dine with us.” Before Emily could refuse her mother, she pointed her finger to shut her up and added. “I'll not hear any excuses. 

     “You cannot make me.” Emily chocked, trying hard not to cry as she ran upstairs. She entered her room and closed the room from behind when she heard her mother shouting. “YES, GO TO YOUR COMFORTABLE ROOM WHICH MY HUSBAND PROVIDE YOU FOR.” 

     With a loud bang Emily slammed the door shut.